Introduction & History

Introduction

In 1990, with funding provided by the National Science Council, the center carried out the project of planning the construction of Taiwan’s first resource satellite receiving station. The station was completed in three years. At present, it is capable of receiving data from SPOT- 5, Terra, Aqua and the FORMOSAT-2, which was launched in May, 2004. The footprint of the ground station reception zone covers an area of about 3,000 km in radius: east to U.S.A.’s Guam, west to China’s Gang-Su, north to Japan’s Hokkaido and south to South China Sea.

Receiving radius of 3000 Km

The station was originally a hardware and software integrated system in 1993. With the advancement of computer technologies and operations of several new generation satellites, the original system, except the 13-meter antenna, has been replaced by new equipments. For instance, indigenously developed “Browse System”, IAPS (FORMOSAT-2), TS-5(Spot-2,-4,-5), DIS (ECL signal storage), SARPS/ASAR (ERS-2, ENVISAT), and MODIS System (Terra, Aqua). Moreover, a 6.1-meter antenna has been brought into operation since October 2003 to avoid any satellite conflicts in reception during services.

13m aerial (Jun ,1993)

6.1m aerial (Oct ,2003)

In order to meet the data processing requirements of both SPOT-5 and FORMOSAT-2, along with the integration of other satellite data processing systems, the station has developed a new interactive operation system called Multi-Sensor Geocoded Production System, which is based upon many research and development results of its geometric image processing expertise over the past two decades.

Currently, there are more than 30 worldwide resource satellite ground stations including U.S.A., France, Canada, Japan, South Korea, China, Israel, Singapore, etc. Despite the fact that our station has been operating since 1993, it still considered as a newcomer, the facilities and performance of our station are ranked at the top among worldwide ground stations. Our station is the biggest satellite data provider in Taiwan for various utilizations in resource inventory and environmental monitoring. In addition, another unique feature of our station is its multifunctional “three in one” infrastructure. In other words, it carries out three different functionalities, i.e., data reception and processing, research and development, and promotion and education. Our station is also, among the few stations, located in academic institutions.

From purely academic cooperation to actual applications, the station provides satellite data and technical assistance to the central and local governments, academic institutions, and various private organizations. Undoubtedly, satellite data has evolved into playing a significant role in our daily lives. In order to further enhance the interaction with our users, a “Satellite Data User and Application Workshop” is conducted in July/August annually by the station to provide our users more information about the station’s functions and development directions, and sharing experiences among the data users. Ever since the inception of the station, it has been making continuous efforts in promoting this relatively new technology.

In recognizing to the station’s successful operating experience, the Korean Advance Institute for Science and Technology (KAIST), the National University of Singapore, and Japan’s Hiroshima Institute of Technology had all paid a visit to our center, in the past period during the initial planning stages of their own receiving station. Moreover, through the annual ground-station meetings with personnel from other stations, we have established a close cooperative relationship with other countries such as Singapore, China, South Korea, Japan and Canada.

Organization and Staff

The Resource Satellite Data Receiving Station has ten part-time staff include one person-in-charge, two common person-in-charge, and seven assistant research staff. There is a total of twenty full-time members being employed. They are divided into three groups (administration, operations, and task).

Organizing “Research and Study Camps for Observing Earth From Space (Satellite Remote Sensing Technology)” for primary and high school teachers

Cooperating with major museums and cultural enterprises to hold long term and large scale exhibits

Receiving visitors

Our station mainly provides satellite data and technique service. Users’ organizations are in various walks of life. It shows that satellite data has connected closely with our daily life. Since our station started using in 1993, domestic satellite telemetry has extended from academic research to practical application. More than 1000 organizations have been accumulated using the service. The following chart shows statistics of the past 5 years.

2011-2013 Institutions Accumulated by Using the service

To strengthen the connection with users, our station holds “User Workshop on Resource Satellite Data” every year. It can let users not only understand our station's running and developing direction but also displays their application achievement. The station started “Remote Sensing Techniques and Application Training Course” from November 26th 1996. Up to now, more than 50 sessions have been held.

Since our station has been completed, the work of promotion and education has never stopped. The purpose is nothing but hoping to convey the knowledge and ability of telemetry to Taiwan people. Our station will not give up any display opportunity; therefore, we co-operate with chief museums and culture business organizations to hold long-term and large-scale special exhibitions and mobile exhibitions around Taiwan.

The mobile exhibitions “Viewing Our Home from Space Special Exhibition” were held in National Museum of Natural Science (Taichung), National Science and Technology Museum (Kaohsiung), National Taiwan Science Education Center, and various places in Taiwan. This Special exhibition started from March 1998 to December 2001 and the visitors add up to one and half million.

The exhibition ”Understand Our Home” on Mobile Exhibition Vehicles which were cooperated and planned by National Museum of Natural Science and the Earth Magazine started the circuit on January 2000. Until December 2002, the exhibition accumulated 270000 tourists.

From May 2001 to October 2001, “Digital Taiwan Land Special Exhibition” was exhibited in National Museum of Natural Science (Taichung) and around Taiwan.

“Image Story of Landscape Taiwan”was collaborated with the National Museum of Natural Science, National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall and the Discovery Magazine Since November 2004. The 16.8 meters Taiwan Satellite Image was held in Tai-Chung National Museum of Natural Science and National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall. It had attracted countless visitors until June 2005.

Since December 2005 “Taipei is Origin a Lake” was exhibited in Shihsanhang Museum of Archaeology and it had accumulated 200000 tourists until August 2006.

The exhibition “Formosat Satellite Special Exhibition” which was operated by Taipei Astronomical Museum from May 2006 to December 2006. The exhibition was organized by Taipei city government department of education, co-organized by National Space Organization, Taipei Astronomical Museum and National Science and technology Museum (Kaohsiung), cooperated by National Central University Center for Space and Remote Sensing and Central Weather Bureau. This Special exhibition started from May 2006 to October 2006.

Satellite image exhibition in Jhongping Junior High School (Taipei) during the community week on March 2007.

The exhibition “Viewing Our Home from Space Special Exhibition Ⅱ” was held in the National Museum of Natural Science (Taichung) from January 29, 2008 to January 4, 2009, which followed up with the “Viewing Our Home from Space Special Exhibition” ten years ago. It was collaborated with the National Museum of Natural Science, Quanta Culture and Education Foundation, and Discovery Cultural and Geographic Monthly.

Invited by Shih-Men Junior High School, the center possessed a stall called “3D of Taiwan” in the “Mobile Science Education Center- Science Fair” which was cooperated and planned by the Taoyuan County Government and National Taiwan Science Education Center at Shih-Men Junior High School from 28 May to 1 June 2008. Lots of big-sized 3D satellite images were presented. Around 200 people taking part in this activity visited our exhibition, including students, parents and community.

The exhibition of Hueilong Elementary and Junior High School’s campus satellite images was held during its 10th Anniversary Festival from 3 to 14 November, 2008. 6 related satellite images were produced on 28 October, 2008.

The film “Satellite Images from the Past to Nowadays” with NSPO was made during the time from January 5 to February 28, 2009, including 13 fly-simulation images and 2 images in different periods.

The film ”Ten-Year Review of 921 Earthquake” was collaborated with the Eastern Broadcasting Company on June 12, 2009. We not only provided live shooting scene but also 6 types of satellite data.

The mobile exhibition “Earthquake Disaster Prevention Museum” which was cooperated by the National Museum of Natural Science, mainly offering the knowledge and skills of disaster preventions for students, family and the public, started its circuit for nearly two years after the exhibition opening ceremony was held in 921 Earthquake Park on September 21, 2009. 61 kinds of data were provided. Until December 31, 2009, the exhibition accumulated 250045 visitors.

The exhibition “Heaven and Earth Shaking: Dissecting the Nature Disaster in Taiwan” cooperated with the National Taiwan Museum exhibiting during the half-year period from 24 November, 2009 to 30 May, 2010. It was aimed to let the public understand the importance of loving the earth. 57 kinds of data were provided. It was estimated that there would be up to 40000 visitors and until 31 December, 2009, 10255 people visited the exhibition.

Satellite images and professional interpretation are provided in 2010 Taipei International Garden and Horticulture Exposition from Nov. 2010 to Apr. 2011. It had attracted approximately 108 million of visitors during the period.

The exhibition “Beauty of Formosa Geology” cooperated with Taoyuan International Airport was held from May, 2012 to Jun.2012. 200 thousand of visitors were accumulated during the display.

The “2012 Geology and Hazard Prevention Exhibition” collaborate with the National Taiwan Museum was exhibited from Sep. 2012 to Dec. 2012. There were about 70 thousand of people visited during the exhibition.

The “Che-Long-Pu Fault Gallery”, co-established with National Museum of Natural Science, was trial-opened on Jan. 30th, 2013 and officially opened on May 30th, 2013. The satellite images, interpretation and relative information are provided by CSRSR. It has attracted more than 240 thousand visitors so far.

The exhibition of ISON comet, held by the National Museum of Natural Science, has been opened on Oct. 25rh, 2013. It is estimated more than 20 thousand people visited so far.

❖ Nevertheless, our station also held many activities, produces satellite image calendar and etc to enhance the popular satellite and remote sensing technology education.

International Co-Operation

During the construction period (1991-1993) of our station, we had known that there were nineteen resource satellite data receiving stations running under the auspices of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (in the USA, France, Japan and Brazil), the National Remote Sensing Center (in Canada and India) and the National Technology Committee (in the Republic of South Africa and Kingdom of Thailand). These receiving stations are merely responsible for receiving and processing data. They simply provide original images for uses. Our station operates in coordination with domestic needs, so that in addition to the afore-mentioned functions, we also take education, promotion, research and development into account. Our success has attracted the attention of the Korean Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), National University of Singapore and Hiroshima Institute of Technology, who visited our station at one time or another when beginning their own plans. They are all running successfully at present.

The Chinese University of Hong Kong was also planning to establish a receiving station and visited our station in 2004. They had successfully established the station in 2005. In addition to the above, through annual receiving station conferences, our station has established close cooperative relationships with stations in Mainland China, Australia, the Republic of South Africa, Canada and Japan. The receiving radius of our station extends to 3000 kilometers, covering the most prosperous area of Asia (including Japan, Korea, Mainland China, the Indochina Peninsula, the South China Sea, the Philippines and North Borneo). This area has great potential in terms of economic development and the need for satellite data will be considerable.

Our receiving station’s basic operating procedure is to encourage international exchange and co-operation, to that end we continually invite internationally renowned scholars to visit, learn, or give speeches at our institute; we support and fund international workshops; encourage colleagues to participate in international conferences and publish their research findings in international journals, and by participating in annual conferences we have built close cooperative relationships with similar receiving stations in Mainland China, Australia, South Africa, Canada, Japan and other nations worldwide with the goal of forming cooperative research and information sharing agreements with them. Through cooperation with foreign research institutes and the maintaining of scholarly ties, we all enjoy the results of the research, which increases the effectiveness of this station and serves to maintain our competitiveness internationally.